Endangered: The Strings of Fate Pt. 02

Endangered: The Strings of Fate Pt. 2

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© 2025 S. Round. All rights reserved. No part of this story may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the author. All sexually active characters in this work are eighteen (18) years of age or older.

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Ch. 13

Evan took his time getting ready the next morning after sleeping in late. He then spent some time catching up on a few of his favorite shows. What was the point of being on summer break if you weren't going to be lazy every now and then, right? While he vegged and enjoyed his free morning, he also thought about the stones and the guardian he heard mentioned in the grimoire, and he wondered who might be best to ask about them. A teacher would be good, but he didn't really want to bother them since it was summer. There was no telling which one of his friends might know something about it, except for maybe Sophia. She stood out as the obvious choice being a magic history nerd, and he had little doubt he would be able to find her at the library.

"I'll get some food and then try to catch her there. If that doesn't work, I'll just call people one by one I guess."

As luck would have it, Evan found Zayla and Barry walking to the cafeteria at the same time, and they decided to eat together. He felt like he hadn't seen them much lately, so it was good to have some time to catch up. He got himself a tray full of the best food the buffet had to offer and sat down with his goblin pals.

"What have you two been up to?"

"Just getting our freak on," Barry said with a big grin.

Zayla looked at him for a moment in shock before shaking her head as if to say it wasn't worth trying to say anything.

"We've been enjoying the freedom of summer," Zayla said. "In the past, it's been hard to spend any... umm... quality time with each other with our families constantly around. That's why we both opted to stay here this year."

"So... getting your freak on, then?"

Zayla just looked down and refused to answer, but Evan saw a bit of blush fill her cheeks. It was funny to see the calm and collected Zayla thrown off her pace for once. She just wasn't one to share intimate information like that so casually. Barry, however, had a clear look of pride on his face.

"That's cool, though," Evan said. "Is there anything planned with your families for the break or is the plan as little family time as possible?"

"I still have to go home every weekend to appease my mom," Barry said. "It's the only way I could get her to agree to let me stay in the dorm for the summer. Other than that, no plans really."

"My family has a big fourth of July celebration they do every year," Zayla said. "My parents have always been crazy about fireworks for some reason, so they have all the relatives over for a big barbecue. I'll probably spend a week there to help out with that."

"That sounds fun."

"It is," Zayla said, smiling. "If you were going to be in town, I'd tell you to stop by."

"Yeah, wish I could," Evan said. "I'll be who knows where by then, though."

"When are you leaving?" Barry said.

"End of this week. Next week I'll be with my parents for the first time in almost a year. I'm sure I'll be smothered with love."

"Moms be momming," Barry said with a knowing look.

They ate and chatted a bit more about this and that. There were a few interesting things going on with social media they laughed about, but they were all soon finished eating and set to go their own ways for the day. But before the two goblins left, Evan decided to shoot a shot and see what they might know about the old legends he heard about.

"Hey, I have a question for you guys," he said. "Do you know anything about some legendary spirit stones, or a person who is the guardian of Earth, or something like that?"

"Yeah, sure," Barry said. "Pretty much everyone knows about the guardian."

"Really? What's the story?"

"Well..." Barry said, thinking, "he's like a children's story character, or maybe a comic book character. I guess you could think of him kinda like Santa Claus."

"I don't get it."

"He's a figure that pops up in stories all over the world," Zayla said. "There isn't a mage family out there that doesn't have some traditional story of how the guardian showed up in a time of crisis and helped save everyone. But all those stories are from a long time ago, and nobody has ever actually seen him before."

"So, he isn't real then," Evan said. "Santa Claus."

"Maybe he was real at one time, or there was someone like him that inspired all those stories, but yeah, most don't think they're any more than old folk tales passed down by mages for years and years," Zayla said.

"Huh. What about the spirit stones?"

Zayla and Barry looked at each other and shrugged.

"Got nothing on that one," Barry said.

"Ah, ok."

"What's the interest?" Zayla said.

"Just heard some stories about them and didn't know anything," Evan said. "But thanks, that helps."

Evan said his goodbyes and left the cafeteria. He aimed his steps straight towards the library. On his way, he thought about what those two had said. It really painted Mr. Price in a different light. Was he really just a kooky old man chasing down a fairy tale? It would be crazy to spend your whole life chasing after the existence of Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. But that would explain how a man that lived to be 105 could spend his whole life looking for something and come up with so little. Did that mean Monstrum had also wasted much of his life when he took up his master's cause? The two had nothing to say about the stones, though, and based on what the book showed in Australia, those seemed to be real at least.

As Evan approached the library, he really hoped that Sophia would have better information. He was pleased to see that she was at the front desk as predicted. She greeted him cheerfully as soon as her big eye caught him walking through the door.

"Hi, Evan! Something I can help you with?"

"Just came to ask you about something. You free?"

"Of course! What do you need?"

"Do you know anything about some legendary spirit stones?"

"Yep."

"Really? So, could you tell me what they are?"

"The spirit stones are said to be the genesis of life and magic on the planet," Sophia said. "Some legends say they were put here by God at the beginning of time."

"There are two stones," she continued. "One made of pure positive magical energy that helped protect life and creation, and another made of pure negative magical energy that only created forces designed to destroy it. Together they were said to provide the necessary forces to spur on a world's evolution."

"Do these stones actually exist?"

"There's a lot of debate about that, actually. Most historians say no, but enough archaeological evidence of the stones has appeared throughout history that there are still some that claim they absolutely are real."

"I see," he said. "What about... the guardian of earth? Is that a real person?"

"Not so many people believe those stories," she said. "But there have been one or two that claimed the guardian existed."

"What do you think?"

"Hmmm, I'm not sure. But I want them both to be real."

Evan did too. Dr. Monstrum had loved his master. He wasn't looking forward to an ending to Monstrum's story showing that Mr. Price had been a quack all along.

"So, do the stones and the protector have anything to do with each other?"

"Well... there are some races that have stories where the protector fought some evil that had the dark stone, but those are all dismissed as being pure fantasy," Sophia said. "Other than that... I guess there was one person who wrote about both of them."

"Who was that?"

"Chester Price," Sophia said. "Elias Monstrum's master. He was one of the few magicians throughout history to give stories of both any credence. He published a book about the history of both legends, and he even provided some of the best proof for the stones' existence."

Evan was surprised to hear Mr. Price's name come up in the real world, but after a second of thought, he realized he shouldn't have been. He had seen firsthand how the old man had dedicated his life to this very subject. It made perfect sense that he would be seen as the authority on it in the academic world.

"Do you have a copy of his book? I think I'd like to read it."

"I'm sorry, it's actually a pretty rare book," she said. "We don't have any copies here."

She looked sad, as if her one chance to actually provide Evan with a book he wanted had disappeared before her eye. But then she stood up quickly, looking flustered.

"We don't have it, but you do!" she said. "It's in your library!"

"Really?"

"Yes! I know because I put it aside when I saw it. It was one of the books I wanted to borrow sometime," she said. "If you go to the second floor, just on the side of the first row, there's a stack of books. Those are the ones I picked out. It's there for sure."

Evan thanked her and went straight from the public library to his own private one. He found the stack of books she mentioned easily, and sure enough, Mr. Price's book was among them. It was titled In Pursuit of History. It was a fitting title considering how Evan had seen the man chase down leads all over the planet for decades. He thumbed through the book and confirmed that it wasn't a grimoire. It looked like he would have to read this one the old-fashioned way.

Taking a seat in the comfortable lounge chair, Evan opened the book and looked through the first few pages. He began reading when he found a section where Mr. Price was describing the guardian of the world.

"The chief reason accounts of the guardian are so hard to authenticate is that they have rarely ever appeared in the same form to any two groups throughout history. Sometimes a man, sometimes a woman, and often not human at all, the appearance of the guardian seems to be entirely determined by their own whims. The original skin changer, the guardian is thought to have been the inspiration for early augmenters experimenting with animal transformations. Later in this book, I will share several accounts from ancient texts that corroborate this theory."

"Whoa," Evan said. "That's wild."

Evan read for a little while longer before he called it quits and placed the book on the desk. The book was fascinating, but it was much too large for him to get through in one night. Monstrum's book was his first priority, but when he was done with that, he figured this book would be next. With his schedule the way it was for the summer, he wasn't sure when that would be. It might even end up having to wait until the next school year.

He wished he could power through both books before his summer trip began, but he knew he wouldn't have a moment to spare for a while. Evan's phone had been blowing up with messages over the last couple of days from his friends demanding some of his time before he left. With time now running out, he would have to see them all soon before he could safely leave. He was already prepared to get very little sleep in the near future.

Ch. 14

Evan's friends all wanted to have a small get together to hang out one last time before he left for the summer, but there were a few of the girls that wanted their own, more intimate meeting to see him off. It meant more running around in his last days on campus, but of course he didn't mind. It was always fun hooking up with them, and now sex even counted as training his magic! Having sex to further his life's goals. It was peak multitasking. He was sure there were men who would kill for such a thing.

Due mostly to how threatening her messages had become, Evan decided to spend time with Lia first. She had recently found a part-time job at a clothing store, and she was struggling. Her boss was nice, and the work wasn't hard, but the change of going from free-spirited college life to a monotonous nine-to-five job was crushing her soul. She messaged Evan every day, and each day her request to have him come visit her became more and more desperate. It had gotten to a point that her messages now hinted at some sort of stabbing or removing of certain body parts if he kept ignoring her. He didn't think she was quite crazy enough to really do such a thing, but Evan didn't want to push too far and find out.

Evan went to the shopping center in the morning and found it mostly empty. When he entered Lia's place of employment, he found that it was completely devoid of shoppers. From what Lia had told him, the store was pretty popular, so this lull was most likely due to it being a morning hour on a weekday. A bell chimed and signaled his arrival, quickly grabbing the attention of the young hobbit lady that had been doing something in the back room.

"Evan! You came!"

She bounded over to him and squeezed his hands affectionately with a big smile.

"Well, I was kinda worried about what might happen to me if I didn't."

"No idea what you're talking about," she said. "But since you're here, let me show you around!"

The shop wasn't too large, so it didn't take long for Lia to show Evan the sights. But the quick tour became a shopping session when they got to the male clothing section. Lia began picking out shirts and pants that she liked and thought would look good on him. Evan tried to tell her that he didn't really need any new clothes, but she cut him off and told him to just let her have fun dressing him up. After they made their way through all the men's clothing, she had gathered an impressive pile of items for him.

"Ok, now you just need to try them on," she said.

"Really?"

"Mmhmm," she said, beaming. "I want to see how handsome you look in them."

He couldn't help the smile that bloomed on his face after the compliment, and he gave in to her request. He took her favorite shirts and went into one of the four dressing rooms situated at the side of the main floor. They were standard dressing rooms with a mirror, a bench, and a curtain for privacy. Evan picked up the first shirt on the pile which just so happened to be a colorful pink tank top decorated with thin blue geometric flowers. It fit well, but it definitely wasn't something he would have picked out for himself.

"Are you sure this was in the men's section?" he said.

"Yep! Is there a problem?"

"I just think... maybe it's not for me."

"Let me see."

Before he could respond, Lia whipped open the curtain and stepped into the small space with him. She closed the curtain behind her and fixed him with a critic's eye.

"I don't know, I think it looks pretty sexy," she said, grinning. "Especially with those muscles you're growing on those arms."

She reached over and gently squeezed his bicep as she talked. He flexed his arms in response which caused her to giggle. Evan did think his arms had bulked up some over the months of continued workouts, which he was pleased about. That certainly did add to the tank top's appeal, but did it really have to be this color?

"You know what, I think I know what the problem is," she said. "They just don't go with these pants!"

Lia stepped forward and quickly undid his pants before violently tugging them down to his ankles. Evan's cock, which had been half hard thanks to Lia's close proximity, swung up and out into the open air just in front of the kneeling hobbit's face. Without hesitation, she used her tongue to drag his member into her mouth and sucked him deep. She let out a satisfied moan as she looked up into Evan's eyes with a mischievous look.

"Oh fuck," Evan groaned as Lia began to bob her head. "What if someone comes in?"

"That would be so hot, wouldn't it!?" she said with a cheeky smile. "Don't worry, nobody ever comes in at this time, and the owner is away today."

Evan sat down on the bench and Lia crawled in between his legs for easier access. She grabbed his throbbing erection and licked it from base to tip while making eye contact. After a few swirls of her tongue around the head, she resumed sucking him off in earnest. She bobbed her head furiously with such enthusiasm that it was easy to tell she had been greatly looking forward to tasting his dick for a while. It felt so good that Evan's legs began to shake from the sensation.

Perhaps sensing that she was close to getting a mouth full of his cum, Lia stood up and began frantically taking off her clothes. As soon as her short, but curvy, body was completely bare, she spread her legs on either side of Evan's waist and sank her flooded sex down over Evan's hard shaft. Once she was fully seated, Evan captured her lips and kissed her passionately.

Evan grabbed her thick ass and began helping her bounce on his cock. If anyone did happen to come in, the curtain certainly wouldn't do anything to hide the wet slapping of flesh and the moans that were echoing out of the small dressing room. Over and over again she bottomed out on his dick, and each time the tight inner channels of her pussy squeezed on his cock as if it never wanted to let it go.

"Oh god," she moaned. "I've dreamt of this since I started here."

The little exhibitionist was clearly getting close to cumming, but Evan got an idea that he knew would take things to the next level for her. If she wanted to fuck around in a public place so badly, then he was going to help her get the full experience.

"What are you doing?"

Lia looked disappointed as Evan forced her back and stood up. He knew she was right on the edge, but he also knew she would love what happened next. Evan positioned them so he stood behind her facing the mirror on the wall. He pushed her shoulders down while his other hand pulled her hips back to his, forcing her to bend over before him with her hands against the wall for support. He grabbed his dick and playfully teased her pussy with the head. She moaned and squirmed as she tried to push back and get it back inside.

"Ooh, please, give it to me," she whined.

Lia let out a contented sigh as Evan mercifully pushed his hard cock into her tight opening. He slowly pushed forward until he was fully seated balls deep inside her. She smiled, probably thinking that a change in position was all he had in store for her, but her eyes went wide when he reached over and pulled the curtain back, completely exposing them to the open.

"E-Evan! What are you doing!?"

"Don't worry," Evan said as he kissed her shoulder and brought his mouth to her ear. "Nobody ever comes in at this time... probably."

Lia's whole body shook as Evan began to saw his cock in and out of her from behind. All she could do in response was moan, seemingly losing all ability to form words as Evan slowly picked up his pace. If anyone had come in right then, they would have had a full view of the two fucking. But as long as any passersby stayed outside, the position of the changing room on the side of the store made it so they wouldn't see a thing. But the potential, the possibility of being caught and having someone see all of the sinful things they were doing, that was the thrill that Lia seemed to love, and it was driving her to never before reached heights.

Evan was also reaching his limits as the situation heightened the whole experience of being with the beautiful hobbit girl. He grabbed hold of her hips and hammered hard into her, smacking her ass with every thrust, and causing the flimsy dressing room to shake around them. When he reached his limit, he thrust forward as deep as he could and exploded within her. Lia's entire body shook violently, her eyes rolled back, and her mouth opened in a silent scream. With her tongue hanging out to the side like a cartoon, she looked completely broken.

Stepping back and watching his cum ooze out of her pussy, Evan closed the curtain and helped his friend sit down on the bench. It took her a minute to come down from her high and catch her breath, but when she did, she had a serene look on her face, appearing deeply satisfied.

"Mmm, so good," she said as she touched the white semen leaking out of her. "Best workday ever!"

Ch. 15

"Oh my god, these biscuits are the best, right?"

"They are. This place knows what they're doing."

Evan stuffed the last bite of his jam-covered biscuit into his mouth while giving Laia a thumbs up. It was early afternoon on a nice sunny day, and they were enjoying a meal together at a new breakfast restaurant Laia had recommended. She had talked it up quite a bit, but after trying it for himself, he had to admit it was delicious.

"So, when do you start work?"

"Ugh, next week," Laia said with a defeated look. "I'm so not looking forward to it."

"Don't blame you," Evan said. "It's going to be rough doing all that work out in the hot summer sun."

Laia hadn't been as proactive as her sister in sending out resumes, and the available jobs in town dried up much faster than she expected. Probably due to the recent influx of students looking for summer work, she wasn't able to find any jobs that suited her tastes like her sister had. Instead, she was just barely able to get hired on at a landscaping company. It looked like she was destined to spend the next few months mowing lawns and trying not to burn to a crisp.

Evan was shocked at first when she told him what she was going to be doing, but he realized soon that he shouldn't have been. Out in the rest of the world, it was rare to see a girl amongst the legions of workers that cared for everyone's lawns. Not that they couldn't do the work, it was just a male dominated field. But in Tourmaline, such a thing as a male dominated field simply couldn't exist, so there were many women working in businesses that you wouldn't typically see them in elsewhere.

"I just hope I don't get weird tan lines," Laia said, groaning.

They continued to chat as they worked through their breakfast food. Evan had gotten a big fluffy waffle with a side of biscuits, and Laia had pretty much gotten one of everything on the menu. Even with the disparity in the amount of food they each had, he knew they would probably be finished around the same time.

"So, you spent yesterday with Lia, huh?" she said. "How was that?"

Evan could see she was purposefully trying to sound disinterested, but he knew this could be a prickly topic. The sisters loved each other, but they had developed a strong rivalry when it came to their dealings with him.

"Uh, yeah, we hung out," he said. "What... did she tell you?"

"Just that you visited her at work and had a great time."

"Yeah, it was nice. Seems like she's doing well there."

He had worried that Lia had shared every intimate detail with her sister again to rile her up, but maybe she had finally learned some discretion.

"Did you two have sex where people could see?"

Evan coughed as he nearly choked on the waffle in his mouth, his hopes that Lia had stopped playing games with her sister dissolving away in an instant.

"Nobody saw anything!" he said. "But... yeah, we did it in the store."

Laia balled up her fist and angrily stabbed one of her sausages with a fork.

"I knew it," she said. "Lia kept talking about how embarrassing it was that you had given her a hard time where everyone could see. Except she sounded anything but embarrassed and she made sure to mention how shaky her legs were afterwards."

"..."

"She always acts so superior!" she said. "Do you think she's better than me at sex?"

"No! You're both great at it, and I don't have any favorites."

"Hmm." Laia squinted her eyes at him.

No matter how she looked at him, though, he wasn't going to say anything else. There was no way he could win if he started comparing his partners' performances in bed. Thankfully, her scrutinizing look didn't last long before a sly smile crept over her lips.

"Well... that's fine," she said. "I know just what I can do to shut her up for good."

"What's that?"

"You'll see," she said with a small laugh.

After a little while longer, they finished their meal and made their way back to Evan's room. The twins had graduated, but they didn't yet have the means to live on their own, so they were forced to live with their mom again. That wasn't so bad, but it did mean it was a little awkward to go to their rooms for sex, making Evan's place the only real option. They shared a kiss and groped each other lightly once inside, but Laia stopped him before they could go any further.

"Wait for a second. I'll be right back."

Laia slipped away to Evan's bathroom, taking a bag she had brought along with her. Knowing where their afternoon was heading, Evan went ahead and undressed while he waited for his date to return. He was seated naked on the edge of his bed when Laia finally emerged from the bathroom. She had also removed everything, revealing her sexy little body for his eyes to feast on. After devouring her with his eyes, he noticed she was holding a bottle in her hand.

"Lube?"

"Mmhmm," she said, setting it down next to the bed. "We're going to need it."

"...?"

Evan had never needed to use lube with any of the girls he had been with. Both parties had been so excited when they had been together that their natural lubrication had been more than enough. So, he was confused for a moment by her statement, but then it hit him as she stepped in front of him and turned around. Bending over in front of him, she displayed her ass for him to see in all its glory. And there he saw a brightly colored jewel gleaming between her cheeks, confirming that she was wearing a plug.

"I've been preparing myself," she said, facing Evan. "I want to do something that Laia hasn't, something just between us again."

The curvy hobbit straddled his waist and looked deep into his wide eyes.

"I want you to fuck my ass."

Evan's cock lurched, making Laia giggle. He couldn't handle the excitement any longer and pulled her in for a hot kiss. While exploring each other's mouths, Laia ground her wet pussy against his throbbing cock, driving them both insane. Laia had grown much more confident as they had continued to explore their sexuality with each other, but he had no idea she would pull something like this. Hearing her say something so naughty was one of the hottest things he had ever experienced.

"Are you sure? It might hurt?"

"I've been wearing plugs to get used to it," she said. "And it just feels good now."

"Wow," he said. "Have you been thinking about this for a long time?"

Laia blushed and shrugged her shoulders.

"I've always wondered what it was like," she said. "But I only got serious about it recently."

"..."

"Will you do it?"

Laia tried to maintain her confidence, but he could see the vulnerability hidden beneath. He knew she would be shattered if he were to push her away at this point. And he would be lying if he said he had never thought about doing this before. It had just never been something he felt he needed. But if she really wanted it, he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to try it out and see what all the fuss was about.

"Ok. Just tell me what to do."

Laia clapped her hands excitedly and dismounted him. She then reached behind and carefully removed the plug from her ass with a moan. When it was revealed, it was much larger than Evan had expected. She definitely wasn't kidding about preparing herself. Evan watched as she promptly jumped onto his bed and got on her hands and knees.

"Get yourself good and lubed up first," she said. "I already prepped in the bathroom."

Evan grabbed the bottle she set down earlier and proceeded to squirt out a healthy amount of lube onto his shaft. It didn't take long for his dick to be completely covered and slick.

"Now, very carefully, push inside," she said as she put her shoulders down on the mattress and shook her hips enticingly.

He got behind her on the bed and took a moment to take in the view. The short hobbit had a nice thick backside. He had seen it many times, but usually he only held onto it while thrusting himself deep into her pussy. But now, he was treading into unknown territory. Laia had apparently prepared and cleansed herself for this very moment, and her asshole now looked cute and inviting. Evan placed the head of his dick against the tight opening and slowly applied pressure.

"Ooh, that's it," she moaned. "Nice and slow."

Evan listened well, only pushing forward at a snail's pace. He had wondered if such a small place would actually accommodate him, but probably thanks to her training, he managed to pop inside with little effort. As his shaft became engulfed, he marveled at the strange sensation. It was definitely tighter and even warmer than when he entered a woman vaginally. There was great resistance, but because of the ample lubrication, it only felt super comfortable. He kept pushing forward slowly until she finally managed to take his entire length.

"H-holy fuck," she said. "It feels so big."

"It's really, really tight," he said. "Does it hurt?"

"No, but I need a minute to adjust."

They stayed joined together for several minutes, allowing Laia some time to get used to the sensation of her ass being stretched. Evan spent the time kneading her cheeks like dough, which made her laugh. After enough time passed, Laia finally started moving. Her hips moved up and down a couple of inches at a steady pace, drawing moans from them both. There was an urge within Evan to grab her and fuck her hard in order to cum, but he knew how wrong that would be. He simply let her set the pace until she requested otherwise.

Laia seemed to adapt quickly after that as she soon started shaking her hips vigorously. She had one hand gripping the sheets and another rapidly rubbing her clit. Her breath became labored as she bounced her ass onto Evan's cock, and he just held on for the ride. It was so tight inside her ass, and it was such a new sensation, that he felt like he would be able to cum soon. But surprisingly, it was Laia that announced her climax first.

"Oh fuck, I'm cumming!"

Evan was taken aback as Laia's legs began to spasm. She planted his dick balls deep inside her and rode out the waves of pleasure coursing through her body. It had the effect of tightening her channel even harder on his cock. It wasn't painful but Evan had to hold on to her hips just to make sure he wasn't expelled.

"O-oh my god," Laia said weakly. "I didn't think I could cum like that."

"Especially from your ass," Evan said. "Must've unlocked something in there."

Laia turned and looked at him over her shoulder. She looked tired, but there was also a burning look in her eyes. It was a hunger he hadn't seen within her even on her horniest of days.

"More," she said. "Fuck my ass, Evan."

Having been on the edge and witnessing her explosive orgasm, there was no way Evan could hear that and not oblige. He grabbed her how he had wanted to earlier and began to steadily thrust his hips into her with powerful shots. Laia yelped, but the moans and laughter that came after proved she loved it.

"E-Evan!"

With a squeal, Laia actually started to cum again while Evan fucked her ass hard. That was enough to finally push him over the edge, and he began filling her ass with his white-hot cum. They came together, and when he had fully unloaded inside her, he sat back and let his dick finally slip out of her tight channel. As if his dick had been the only thing holding her up, Laia collapsed into a sweaty heap on the bed. It took her a while to come down from her high, but when she did, she fixed Evan with a brilliant smile and hugged him tightly.

Laia spent the rest of the day talking about how amazing it had felt and how she had never cum so easily before. She even made him promise to do it again soon. There was just something in it that hit the perfect spot for her, and it was clear they had unlocked Laia's new favorite kink. A new anal queen had been born.

Ch. 16

Evan continued his farewell tour the next day by having a date with Emersyn. She said her mom had been constantly bothering her about bringing him back to the restaurant, so they made an appearance and ate some lunch there, much to the joy of Wirda. Having tried many things on his first visit, Evan had a better idea of what to order. Not that it mattered. Wirda continued to bring out new treats for them to have, on the house, and he ended up having just about everything on the menu again anyway. When they finished, Evan was completely stuffed.

"I think I need to walk some of this off," he said as they drove back to the dorm. "Want to wander around campus for a while?"

"Sure," Emersyn said.

They spent the next hour meandering around the walking paths, observing the scenery. It was thankfully one of those nice summer days where the temperature didn't soar too high, so they were comfortable as they walked and chatted about what they had been up to lately. Emersyn had mainly been holed up in her room reading, which was no surprise. Eventually, Evan was no longer uncomfortably full and decided to take a break.

"Want to sit for a bit?"

They were just entering the courtyard, and there were plenty of places to rest and enjoy the surrounding gardens and fountains. A perfect location for resting one's legs.

"Mmhmm," Emersyn said. "I know a good spot."

Revealing her wings, she grabbed Evan under his shoulders and shot up into the sky. The trip was short as her destination was the nearby clock tower. There was a nice deep ledge around the huge clockface that left plenty of room for multiple people to walk around together. Emersyn set them down there before casually sitting with her feet dangling over the edge. Evan sat down next to her, but with a little more caution in his movements.

"So, this is what it looks like from up here."

They were high enough that they could see to the edges of town. The only thing blocking them from seeing everything happening in Tourmaline were the swaths of green and pink trees that densely populated the area. The brilliant colors of the town swayed gently with the cool breeze that Evan could now better enjoy at their elevated height. It was easy to see why Emersyn came up here so often.

"It's beautiful."

Emersyn just nodded with a satisfied smile. They sat like that in silence for a while, resting their legs and taking in the sights before Emersyn finally broke the silence.

"I heard you fucked Laia's butt."

Evan did a double take, not quite understanding what he heard for a couple seconds before it finally registered.

"Where did you hear that!?"

"We have a group chat," Emersyn said. "Laia's been bragging about it all day."

"Yeah... that tracks."

"Was it nice?"

"Uhh, yeah, it was," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was really surprised that she asked for it, honestly. If I had bet on it, I would probably have picked you as the first person to ask for anal."

"Hmm," she said. "I've been wanting to try it, but I haven't done any research yet. Maybe I need to move it up on the list."

"There's... a list?" he said before shaking his head. "Never mind. I don't mind doing it, but you probably should prepare for a while like Laia did. It's not something to rush into."

"You're right. I have other things to check off before then anyway."

"Like what?"

Emersyn smiled mischievously and stood up suddenly.

"Come to my room, and I'll show you."

They returned to Tipski Hall in record time thanks to Emersyn flying them over the campus. Emersyn excitedly led him into the building and up the stairs to her room. Evan could tell there was something up, but he had no idea what it could be. With how Emersyn went about methodically exploring her sexuality, just about anything could be waiting for him. He just hoped it wouldn't be anything too bizarre... or painful. It turned out to be pretty tame in the end. Emersyn had managed to get her hands on some costumes she wanted to roleplay with. The only difference from their previous cosplay adventures was that she now had a costume for him.

"It's the warrior's outfit from my favorite series, Ensnared," Emersyn said. "I had it custom made by a professional cosplayer."

The costume looked well made, but it was certainly not going to hide much. There was no shirt, so it looked like his upper body was going to be mostly bare, at least in the front. It had armored shoulder pads connected to a long red cap that flowed down the back. The armor latched itself to the body with an x-shaped harness around the midsection. Down below there was a pair of tight black leather pants, and some tall black boots as well. It was all capped off with a couple accessories: a sword and a helmet that covered the upper part of the face.

"What kind of story is this from exactly?"

"It's about a witch being hunted by the country's hero due to a rival framing her for murder," Emersyn said. "When they meet and fight for the first time, she manages to use her magic on him to turn him into her bodyguard. She uses him to fight off other pursuers and eventually they fall in love and fight against the evil coven trying to rule the world. It's amazing."

"Sounds like it."

"Go put it on! I'll get mine ready too."

Evan grabbed the gear and shut himself in the bathroom. It was a bit of a hassle getting it all on, especially not knowing what it was really supposed to look like, but he eventually managed in the end. Looking at himself in the mirror, he thought it didn't look half bad. It would have been better if he was more muscular, but he was in good enough shape that he was just able to pull it off. The only real problem he had was that the tight pants made it difficult to walk in and left nothing to the imagination. But, since it was only for Emersyn's private use, he didn't mind too much.

He exited the bathroom and found his devil playmate also fully decked out in her own costume. It was a pretty traditional looking witch's costume. She had on a dark blue dress that reached to the top of her knee high socks. Over her shoulders she wore a dark cloak, and on her head sat a big, pointed hat. The hat had holes cut in it to allow her long horns to poke out the top.

"You look good," Evan said, eyeing her ample cleavage popping out of the top of the dress.

"You too," Emersyn said, smirking as she eyed his pants.

"So, how do you want to do this?"

"First, we take some pictures," she said. "We look too good not to."

They spent the next twenty minutes taking pictures in various poses with Emersyn's instructions. After the first couple where he used his sword to look intimidating, Evan started having a lot of fun with it. It wasn't long before they were both laughing and taking pictures in silly poses. Eventually the silly pictures lead to a few risqué poses, and before they knew what was happening, they had forgotten the camera completely and started making out.

They kissed hotly for a few minutes before Emersyn fell to her knees and began working at the zipper of Evan's tight pants. She carefully opened the pants and smiled brightly when Evan's hard cock sprung out as if to celebrate escaping its forced containment. She started stroking the shaft with a hungry look in her eyes.

"I've got you now, my hero," she whispered before closing her eyes and engulfing the head in her hot mouth.

Emersyn was always enthusiastic when playing with Evan, but she seemed especially into it this time. She drew out several moans from him just with the excellent movements of her tongue along his shaft. He got the feeling that she had imagined these characters in this exact scenario many times, and it was scratching an itch in a very satisfying way for her to live it out in reality. Almost out of instinct, Evan put his hand on her head, but for the first time, she slapped it away and fixed him with an angry look.

"No! I'll tell you when you can move, my hero."

"Uhh, yes ma'am."

"Call me mistress."

"Ok. Yes, mistress."

"Good boy." She smiled and kissed his cock once again. "Now, get on the bed for me."

It seemed like the witch had the upper hand in this relationship, even in the bedroom. That was fine, but since Evan didn't know the story, it was hard for him to play his role effectively. Luckily, it seemed like he could keep his mouth shut and let her have her way with him, and that would be in character for the warrior in this scenario.

Once Evan was flat against the bed, Emersyn threw off her cloak and hiked up her dress to reveal she wasn't wearing underwear. She then carefully straddled Evan's waist and sank down onto his throbbing cock. Emersyn was very wet, so there was little resistance as she began to bounce on top of him. Evan played his part and said little as she pleasured herself with his body.

"Oh, yes, my hero," she moaned. "You belong to me."

"Yes, mistress."

Emersyn planted her hands on his chest and rode him hard. She looked and felt amazing on top of him, her insides squeezing him hard. Her breasts bounced their way free from the tight dress and swayed wildly with her undulating body. That sight along with the look of pure lust in her eyes was driving Evan closer and closer to his orgasm. He gripped the sheets hard and tried his best to hold on until she got hers. Fortunately, Emersyn was worked up enough that she wasn't far behind.

"Cum for me, my hero," she said out of breath. "Cum inside and seal the pact!"

"It's coming!"

Evan had no idea what she was talking about, but he let go and began blasting his load into her pussy. Emersyn screamed to the ceiling as her devil wings burst out behind her. It was startling, but it wasn't the first time Evan had seen her transform from being too excited. Her wings shook as she moaned and ground herself against him with his cock fully seated inside. When her shaking stopped, she fell over on top of him, covering them both with her wide wings. Evan held her close and kissed the top of her head, drawing a contented sigh from her.

"That was fun. But what was that you said at the end? Something about a pact?"

"Oh, nothing. I just own you now, according to the laws of witchcraft. Just like in the final chapter of book one."

Evan laughed, but her tone made it sound like she was serious. He spent the rest of the night further living out her fantasies in the costumes she picked out, and she never once broke character. He did his best to play his role, but he stumbled a few times. Still, it was incredibly hot filling the sexy devil over and over again.

At the end of the night, Emersyn tried to get him to take one of the books with him to read, but he refused. She initially looked disappointed, but she perked up when he made a promise to roleplay all her favorite scenes instead. With a quick look around her room at all the stacks and stacks of books, he knew he had committed himself to many years of hard, satisfying work.

Ch. 17

It had been a lot of fun spending time with his friends over the last few days, but Evan was grateful when the day of his departure from town finally arrived. He was really looking forward to relaxing on the plane and giving his dick a rest from the constant fucking. A year ago, Evan would have never believed he could have too much sex, but he now knew there were physical limits that just couldn't be transcended. Everyone needed a break every now and then.

Evan had spent what free time he had over the last week packing for the summer. Because he was going to be gone for months, he pretty much packed everything he owned, which left his room looking sad and desolate. It also made for a lot of heavy suitcases, but he was blessed with good friends who volunteered to help him bring them down to the car. Zayla, Barry, Billie, and Clara all helped, and they were done in no time. As the time to leave neared, they all met in the common room to say their goodbyes.

"Be sure to come back in one piece," Barry said, shaking his hand firmly. "I can't handle all this estrogen on my own."

"Oh, whatever," Zayla said, rolling her eyes. "Have a good trip, Evan."

"Thanks."

"Don't forget to keep up with your training," Billie said, playfully hitting his arm. "I worked hard to grow those baby muscles you have there."

"Don't worry, I'm sure they have a gym," Evan said, laughing.

When Evan turned to Clara, she stepped up and gave him a big hug. He embraced her and rubbed her back before she parted and fixed him with a bright smile.

"The wedding is set for August, just after you're scheduled to be back," she said. "So don't delay your return! You have to be there!"

"I will be, I promise."

Clara and Matt had long expected to get married following Clara's graduation, but the pregnancy had expedited things greatly once it was announced. Clara wanted to walk down the aisle without showing off a huge baby bump, so they were trying to get it done as quickly as possible. If it weren't for the couple's insistence that Evan should attend, they might have even gone through with the ceremony already. But Evan was grateful, as he did want to attend and witness the special moment for his friend. It was something fun he was looking forward to at the end of a summer of work.

"Bye, everyone!" Evan said, walking out the door. "Have a good summer!"

Everyone waved and bid their own final goodbyes as Evan left the building with Robin at his side. Robin had quietly stood in the back as Evan talked to his friends. It was easy to forget she was there sometimes, but she almost always was. The only times she let him roam free were when he was in the dorm at night or when he was out and didn't plan to leave the campus grounds. Thanks to that grace, he was still able to slip off to the hidden library when he needed without giving away the secret.

"Well, just us from here on," Evan said as they got into the waiting vehicle. "I'll be in your care as always."

Robin simply smiled and nodded as she took the wheel and got them on the road towards the base. Evan was glad to have her along for his trip. There was no telling what kind of forces might be out there hoping to snatch him up at his parent's home, and he never wanted their safety to be in jeopardy because of him. He was told that security had been stationed around his folks since he left last year, but he still felt better knowing that someone he trusted like Robin would be by his side during this trip. But how she would stay by his side did make him feel a little awkward.

"I'm sorry you have to pretend to be my girlfriend," Evan said. "I know it was the only way for you to stay in the house, but I'm sure it's going to be awkward for you."

"There's no problem," Robin said. "It was a good idea. This way, there will be fewer gaps in your security."

"Just... sorry in advance if my parents get super weird about it. I've never brought a girl home before."

"It'll be fine," she said with a small smile.

Evan had come up with the idea to introduce Robin as his girlfriend when they were discussing ways for her to easily get inside the house while he stayed with his parents. He had mentioned it half-jokingly, but Robin had unexpectedly thought it was a good plan. Of course, it wouldn't have meant anything if his parents didn't go along with it, but they were actually thrilled when he told them he wanted to bring a girl home. There was no talk about it being inappropriate or anything like that. In fact, they insisted that she come meet them, and they even lightly reprimanded him for not telling them about her sooner. He felt bad about deceiving them again, but it was all for their good as well as his. And he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little happy about getting to introduce such a pretty woman as his girlfriend, even if it wasn't true.

When they arrived at the base, they proceeded to drive through all the way to the airport. There, several base employees took their luggage and loaded it onto the plane. He thanked them for the help and boarded the plane with Robin in tow. But when he got inside the cabin, he was shocked to meet a surprise guest.

"What are you doing here?"

"I've been assigned to, once again, make sure your highness's royal ass doesn't get killed," Agent Jackson said with a look of resigned annoyance.

"No," Evan said, shaking his head. "I already have Robin!"

"Yeah, well, I guess that wasn't good enough. As long as you're off on this field trip of yours, I have to babysit."

Evan just sighed and slid into a nearby seat.

"Whatever," he said. "Thanks for coming, I guess."

"You can thank me by not getting into trouble this time"

Robin met eyes with Jackson briefly as she followed Evan, but they both said nothing, seemingly content to ignore each other's existence. Like that, the cabin took on a subdued atmosphere as they soon took off into the air. With Robin being her quiet self and Jackson dead to the world as she played with her phone, Evan took the opportunity to grab a quick nap. The next thing he knew, he was being shaken awake by Robin, having arrived at their destination.

They loaded up into a vehicle provided by their security detail and started their trip to Evan's hometown with Robin driving. It took about forty-five minutes to get there, so Evan spent that time nervously going over the story they had concocted about how he met Robin. He also did his best to fill her in on everything she needed to know about his folks in order to make a good impression. As they got closer and closer to his home, it was obvious that he was getting too worked up.

"It's going to be ok," Robin said, trying to calm him. "I've got this. You'll see."

Evan nodded and took a few big breaths. He thought about taking a pill, but decided against it. It would be fine, just like she said. He wished he didn't have to lie so much to his parents, but there was no helping that. And it did help that he wouldn't have to do it all alone. Remembering that fact, he finally found his calm. That was until he looked at Agent Jackson in the back seat and saw her smirking at him. She shook her head and mouthed the word pussy at him so Robin couldn't hear. He flipped her off and turned to look out the window. Finally, they arrived and parked a few houses down on his parents' block.

"Alright, I'm out," Jackson said, leaving the car. "I'll be in the neighborhood, but don't call unless it's an emergency."

Before he could respond, she roughly closed the door and went off to join the car full of security officers that had followed them. Robin put the car back into drive and parked again, this time in front of Evan's childhood home.

"Ready?" she said.

Evan nodded. They exited the vehicle and made their way to the front door, leaving their luggage behind to bring in later. First, they wanted to get all the introductions out of the way. It felt weird, but Evan decided to knock on the door instead of just barging in. He didn't know what they were doing inside, and he didn't want to barge in unannounced. It only took a second after his knock for the door to swing open, revealing his beaming mother.

"My baby boy!" she said, enveloping him in a big hug. "I'm so happy you're home!"

"Me too, mom," he said, patting her back.

"Son," his dad said as he appeared from behind his mother and shook his hand.

"Good to see you, dad."

With that, the attentions of his parents turned to the beautiful woman standing behind him on the porch. It was time to introduce her, just like he practiced.

"Mom, dad," he said. "This is my Robin- I mean, my girlfriend, Robin."

Fuck. He blew it. However, the moment was saved when Robin unexpectedly stepped forward to hug Evan's mother.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Mathews!" she said, hugging her tight. "Evan has told me so much about you!"

"Oh, has he?" Mrs. Matthews said before laughing merrily.

"You too, Mr. Matthews," Robin said, waving at his dad. "So great to finally meet you both!"

Robin had on a dazzling smile and bounced on her toes with apparent joy at meeting her boyfriend's parents. Her voice was light and chipper, and after greeting his father, she stepped back and wrapped herself around one of Evan's arms affectionately, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Evan stood frozen with his mouth hanging open for several seconds. His mind had gone blank when he saw Robin acting like a bubbly schoolgirl. Finally, feeling her discretely elbowing him in the side, his mind rebooted. But only one thought was running through his head as he turned and looked at her hanging on his arm. Who the fuck was this person, and what did she do to his ever-serious body guard!?

Ch. 18

Robin continued to be bubbly and talkative as Evan's parents helped them get their luggage and ushered them inside. Evan only snapped out of his stunned silence when his mom asked him why he was acting so weird. After that, he did his best to go along with Robin's act and behave normally. His dad couldn't help making a few jokes about him finally bringing a girlfriend home, but overall it wasn't as awkward as he thought it might be.

Even though his folks were happy to have Robin there, they still made sure to give her a room of her own, not being so progressive as to bless their son hooking up in the home just yet. Once Evan had unloaded his bags into his room, he went to Robin's room and was thankful to find her alone. He made sure his parents weren't nearby and closed the door so they could talk in private.

"What was all that about!?"

"What do you mean?" she said.

"You! You were like a totally different person down there! I had to keep looking at your face to convince myself you weren't an imposter."

"I was acting," she said with a satisfied smile. "Good, right?"

"I guess," he said. "But you really could have just been yourself."

"Well, I've met a boyfriend's parents before," she said. "And they're always hoping their son has started dating a bubbly beauty queen."

Evan wasn't sure that was true about his parents, but he couldn't deny that they did seem to take an instant liking to Robin. That night they ordered pizza for dinner and played board games as Evan told his parents stories about his first year at school. He told them what he could and made up a few small lies about what he had to keep secret, but Robin was all smiles and ready to jump in to back up his stories any time something sounded off. It was a good night, and Evan slept well in his childhood room for the first time in a long while.

The rest of the next two weeks went much the same way. Evan spent time with his family, and Robin kept up her girl next door act in order to impress his parents. It took a few days, but he finally got used to her forced personality change. He would have adapted faster if she didn't instantly revert back to her stoic, reserved self any time they were alone. Agent Jackson and the other security officers stayed out of sight, and there were no incidents throughout the entire stay. When the time came to leave, Evan had to enlist Robin's help in prying his body away from his mother's grip. It seemed two weeks out of the year wasn't quite enough time with her son, so she forced him to agree to make time to come home again soon.

Just like that, seemingly just as soon as they had gotten comfortable, they were back in the air flying to their next destination. This time, their stay would be for a couple months instead of weeks. Agent Jackson spent the entire flight asleep, while Robin remained quiet and vigilant, having dropped the faux personality she had impressed his parents with. This time, Evan didn't sleep, and instead passed the time watching the scenery pass below and worrying about what he might find at his next destination.

Evan had seen pictures of Dr. Franklin, but he had no idea what kind of personality the man had. All he knew was that he was a genius in his early thirties, and he had accomplished a lot at a young age. Aside from him, Evan had been told that there were several other scientists on site that were also the leading minds in the emerging magic technology field. All Evan really hoped was that they weren't the type to kidnap and experiment on unwilling generator mages.

All his dealings with his friends and parents had done a good job of distracting him from this moment, but now there was no hiding from it. He was finally set to step back into a lab again. He knew the odds of another kidnapping situation were nearly nonexistent, but that couldn't keep his mind from constantly replaying traumatic memories of what happened before. The killings, the forced transformation, the fact that he just barely escaped a life of servitude. It was all driving his anxiety steadily higher.

Evan pulled a little orange bottle from his pocket and took one of his pills. Dr. Hakim had prescribed them after his panic attack, and he made sure to get a new refill before he left Tourmaline.

"Nervous?" Robin said.

He realized she must have been watching him, so he nodded with a half-smile.

"Yeah," he said. "Can't help thinking about the last time I was in a government lab, you know?"

"I understand," she said.

Robin looked at him with sad eyes for a moment before she continued.

"You don't need to worry, Evan. This time... I won't let anyone take you away."

Evan remembered then that Robin had also dealt with a lot of grief and regret over those events in the early parts of last school year. She knew he didn't blame her, but that didn't stop her from blaming herself. The pill combined with the comfort he received from his reliable friend knocked his anxiety out cold, and he spent the rest of the trip joking around with Robin to help lighten the mood.

A few more hours in the air passed, and they finally landed at their destination. Much like Tourmaline, Dr. Franklin's home was a secluded town connected to a top-secret military base. It was called Far Water, and from the air it looked much like Tourmaline, minus the clock tower and pink trees. They were met by a friendly host as soon as they stepped off the plane and shown to a nearby vehicle. A short ride later they were at the research facility where they would be spending all their time for the rest of the summer.

The building was a few stories high and looked to stretch infinitely into the distance. They were led inside and shown to the main research lab where they stumbled upon an amazing scene.

"Ok... hit it!"

As soon as they stepped into the wide lab, the lights began to flicker as the unmistakable buzz of electricity whirred throughout the room. All eyes were then drawn to a table at the center of the room where a metal robot in human shape slowly sat up and proceeded to stand. As the metal creature took its first exploratory steps, a manic laughter filled the lab.

"Ha... hahaha... HAHAHAHA!"

Evan looked around and spotted the source of the laughter at a far-off control panel. It was a man in a lab coat wearing huge, oversized goggles.

"It's working! IT'S WOOORRRKIIINNG!"

Suddenly, the buzzing in the air disappeared and the lights returned to full strength as the power seemed to drain from the robot entirely. It slowly slumped down before it crashed into a pile loudly on the floor.

"Aww," the man said, removing his goggles.

The man flipped off the switch he had kept his hand on and rushed over to inspect the robot. Several other people wearing similar white coats rushed in as well, all looking very excited. It took a few tries, but eventually the host that guided Evan's group into the room managed to get their attention.

"Excuse me, doctor?" the guide said. "Your guests have arrived."

The doctor initially looked confused, but after a moment, a light bulb seemed to go off in his head.

"Oh! Oh, of course!" the doctor said, rushing over to shake Evan's hand. "You must be Evan! I'm so glad you're here! My name is Dr. Franklin. Dr. Vick Franklin."

"Nice to meet you," Evan said. "I've heard a lot about you."

Dr. Franklin was tall and lanky with short wavy brown hair. He wore big glasses, a baggy white lab coat, and cargo pants, looking very much like the prototypical nerd scientist. Behind him were four women wearing similar garb, all smiling brightly at Evan. Approaching from the side to stand next to Dr. Franklin was a tall, muscular woman carrying a sword at her side.

"This is my bodyguard, Kimberly," Dr. Franklin said, indicating the swordswoman. "She is the head of security here in the lab, and she does a wonderful job of keeping us all safe."

"How was the trip out?" Kimberly said.

"Not bad," Evan said. "Happy it's over though."

"Hi," Robin said, stepping forward to shake Kimberly's hand. "I'm Evan's security officer."

"Yeah, Robin, right?" Kimberly said with a knowing smile. "They say you're pretty good."

"Oh, I'm alright."

Evan was perplexed seeing the blush spread on Robin's cheeks. Unlike the act with his parents, this seemed to be the real deal. It was like she was meeting a celebrity or something. He would have to ask her about it later.

"These four behind me are my fellow researchers that will be working with us all summer," Dr. Franklin said.

The four women all looked at Evan with varying degrees of excitement and shyness. From the left there was one with brown hair, one with black hair, one with blonde hair, and finally one with bright red hair. They each waved as Dr. Franklin pointed them out and introduced them.

"Dr. Martin, Dr. Yamato, Dr. Aetos, and Dr. Wilson," he said. "Four of the best and brightest troublemakers you'll ever meet."

All four smiled and waved at Evan. They were all attractive and looked to be in their late twenties or early thirties. Seeing them starting to give Dr. Franklin shit about his troublemakers comment, Evan thought they gave off the impression of being a tight knit group, and it was easy for him to guess why. It looked like Dr. Franklin and he had something in common besides just being guys. They were both at the center of a group of hungry, beautiful women.

"Yeah, yeah. Nice to meet everyone," Agent Jackson said, silencing everyone. "Where the fuck are our rooms?"

And just like that, the good mood in the lab was killed. There wasn't much talk after that, but it wasn't entirely Jackson's fault. Evan and Robin were also tired from their trip, and they weren't up for much except unpacking and getting to bed anyway, so in some ways, Agent Jackson's rudeness was a blessing. Evan was able to get to sleep soon after his head hit his pillow. Tomorrow, he would finally begin his research with Dr. Franklin, and possibly, take the first step to figuring out why the Eye of Kronos had led him to this place.

Ch. 19

After a solid night's sleep, Evan was woken up early by his alarm. Groaning, he got up and ready for his first day of work, already missing his lazy summer days. Knowing he was in for a day of socializing with new people, he made sure to pop one of his pills before leaving his room. He met Robin and Jackson in the hall when he was done, and together they found their way to the lab. There they found Dr. Franklin and the others already busily setting up shop for the day's work. Jackson promptly posted herself in a seat by the door next to Kimberly and asked not to be disturbed. Kimberly raised a questioning eyebrow at her, but Evan just shook his head and went on his way to meet Dr. Franklin again.

"Hi, Evan!" Dr. Franklin said. "Ready for some fun?"

"Sure," Evan said. "What's on the agenda today?"

"I'm currently setting up for some preliminary tests I want to run with you this afternoon," Dr. Franklin said. "So, this morning you can just look around, or maybe hear from everyone what they're working on. I'm sure they'd all be happy to share. We don't get too many visitors."

"Oh ok. I was curious about what I saw yesterday. With the robot?"

"Oh yes! That's my current pet project," Dr. Franklin said. "I'm using magic circuitry to build AI and create sentient robots!"

"Sentient robots? Like... in Terminator?"

"I know, I know," Dr. Franklin said. "No need to worry. I'm putting in all the necessary safety features. As you saw, there are still several kinks to work out with the body anyway. It'll be a while before it's actually up and running. But the AI is basically complete! Here, I'll show you."

Dr. Franklin excitedly led Evan to a nearby computer monitor.

"This is my pride and joy, Freya," he said. "Freya, say hello to Evan, our new friend."

"Hello, Evan Matthews," the AI said. "Welcome to our lab."

"Wow, cool," Evan said. "It's like an Alexa or something."

"Much more than those old things," Dr. Franklin said.

"What can she do?"

"She handles all the complex calculations for our work, so we don't have to painstakingly enter it into the computer over and over. She also compiles all our work and categorizes it for us for easy retrieval. You can ask her anything and she can pull it up instantly. It's a huge time saver."

"But don't mistake her for a simple gopher program," Dr. Franklin continued. "She's just like a living person, capable of learning on her own and having complex conversations."

"Sounds really advanced," Evan said.

"It's because her core was built on a magic spirit," Dr. Franklin said. "My magic circuitry is built in a way that allows magic to be stored as a power source and as code. And through many trials and errors, I finally found a way to store a spirit digitally. One of my finest achievements to date."

"So, there's a dark spirit in the computer?"

"Not a dark spirit, but a light one," Dr. Franklin said. "One manifested on pure positive energy, cultured right here in the lab."

"Wow, that sounds complex," Evan said. "But is she like... happy in there?"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?"

"Oh, ok, sure," Evan said. "Freya, are you happy being stuck inside a computer?"

"I am happy," Freya said. "I have been able to learn and grow much faster than I would have otherwise, and I believe my future applications in this state far exceed what I could achieve in an ordinary spirit body. I look forward to the day I can walk and talk among you in the mechanical body built by my creator."

Evan chatted a little more with Freya before Dr. Franklin said he needed to get back to his preparations. Evan let him go and took his advice to check on what the others in the lab were working on. The building was huge and filled with many workers of all kinds, but this lab belonged only to Dr. Franklin's group. Despite the low number of people, it was still cluttered as their individual stations were packed with computers, wires, and all sorts of half-finished experiments.

Each of the four ladies he had met briefly the previous evening took up space in one of the four corners of the room. He swept the room with his eyes and tried to decide who to check in on first, when his eyes met one of the girls that happened to be watching him. She wore big circular glasses and had shoulder length wavy brown hair. She was oddly peeking around a bookshelf as if spying on him and pulled back in a hurry like she was caught when he saw her. He had no idea what that was about, but he walked over with Robin in tow to find out for himself.

"Hi," he said with a wave as he entered her area. "It's Dr. Martin, right?"

"Mmhmm!" she said, nodding quickly with a smile. "Pleasure to meet you. But please call me Chelsey."

"Ok, Chelsey," he said. "I'm Evan. Nice to meet you too."

Chelsey was thin and short, probably only a couple inches over five feet tall. She wasn't exactly shy, as she made strong eye contact and spoke clearly, but she did talk very softly, making it so Evan had to concentrate to be sure to hear everything. The only other peculiar thing about her that he noticed right off the bat was that she had what looked like a small twig with two green leaves sticking out of the part in her hair on the right side of her head. On a normal person, Evan would assume it had fallen on them while they were outside, but his experience in Tourmaline taught him that this was most likely more than a decoration.

"So, what are you working on?"

"My work is focused on the applications of spirit technology."

"Is that like what Freya is?"

"That's right," she said in a soft voice. "Spirits are my specialty. I think they'll be the answer to all our problems in the end."

They made a little more small talk before Evan decided he had bugged her enough and went to the next work station. This corner of the lab belonged to the blonde woman. She had her desk enclosed by bookcases and a tarp over the top, making it look like some sort of cave. As he approached, he could see she was wearing some sort of dark goggles as she soldered a circuit board. He knocked on the wall to get her attention and waved.

"Hey. Sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to introduce myself again and maybe see what kind of work you were doing?"

"No problem," she said, putting the goggles up on her head with a smile. "I needed a break anyway."

"Chelsey over there said she worked with spirits. Do you do something similar?"

When he mentioned Chelsey, he turned and looked towards the corner he had just come from and managed to catch her peeking around the corner at him again. She tried to play it off like she was grabbing something off the shelf, but it was clear as day she had been watching him.

"Nah, spirits aren't my thing," the blonde said. "I'm more about the technical side. I helped Vick develop the magic circuits."

Her name was Sierra Aetos. She was taller than Chelsey, but shorter than Evan. Her blonde hair was long and held back in a simple ponytail, most likely to keep it from interfering with her work. They had a pleasant chat before Evan let her get back to work and went to meet one of the other assistants. However, as he was leaving her area, Sierra pinched his ass and laughed when she saw his bewildered reaction. Robin shot her a glare as they walked away, and Evan rubbed his sore bum.

It just so happened that the last two assistants were talking together in the same area, which meant he could talk to them both at once and get it all over with. They also didn't seem to be too busy like Sierra had been, so it was the perfect opportunity all around.

"Hi, Evan," the redhead said. "How's your morning going?"

"Not too bad, just meeting everyone again, chatting a bit," he said. "It's Dr. Wilson, right?"

"That's me," she said. "Also known as Tiffany."

"How's your day going so far?"

"Oh jeez," she said, deflating. "I've got no energy, and I'm way behind on my latest project. It'll probably be a failure anyway, but still."

"Tiff, come on," the girl with black hair said. "You're always too hard on yourself."

"I'm Delilah," she continued, turning to Evan with a big smile.

Her smile wasn't the only big thing about her either. Delilah was well over six feet tall and muscular. She had Asian features and a very muscular build. Even without the use of magic, she looked like she could beat Evan up. Delilah also had a special feature to her appearance like Chelsey, hers being two small pointed black horns on top of her forehead. Tiffany was similar in stature to Sierra, but her hair was red and cut short. Other than apparently being full of negativity, there didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary about her.

"What do you two specialize in?"

"I specialize in converting magic power to electricity and vice versa," Delilah said. "It sounds crazy, but with the right magical knowhow and the right magic circuitry, it works! The efficiency is crap though."

"My work is about trying to create artifacts with modern technology," Tiffany said. "But I haven't had many promising results. The robot that crapped out yesterday was one of my many failures."

"Oh, come on," Delilah said. "Tell him about Freya's nodes."

"Nodes?"

"Freya isn't limited to just the main computer monitor," Delilah said excitedly. "She can jump to any one of these dedicated modules we have set up around the lab."

Delilah pointed out a few small black boxes stationed on everyone's desks. They looked simple enough with a speaker and a red bulb.

"We call them nodes! When the light is on, it means Freya has moved to that node," Delilah said.

"So, they're connected like Bluetooth?"

"It's more than that," Delilah said. "They're actually connected through Freya's spirit. No matter where the node is, no matter the distance, Freya will be able to jump to it instantly. Even halfway across the world!"

"Oh, wow. That's impressive."

"Isn't it!?" Delilah said while pulling Tiffany to her side in a hug. "The nodes were developed and perfected by Tiffany here! She's even started making some watch nodes so we can have Freya with us on the go. She's a genius."

Delilah pointed out the watch Tiffany was wearing and pressed a button on it. It had no clock face and was simply an empty black screen. But after the button was pressed, the screen lit up red, and Freya's voice was heard asking if she could be of assistance. It was like some sort of magical smartwatch.

"Well," Tiffany said with a shrug. "It works alright... for now."

Delilah rolled her eyes and gave a very long, frustrated sigh.

Evan spent the rest of the morning talking with them and the other doctors before they all took a lunch break. The building had a big cafeteria, and the food was surprisingly good, which was great considering how often Evan planned to eat there. When they were all full, they returned to the lab, where preparations had completed, and it was time for Evan to finally take center stage.

Ch. 20

"I want to spend this first day getting some readings on your ability to activate artifacts," Dr. Franklin said. "Just to measure the efficiency of a true generator versus activation through artificial means."

That afternoon ended up being spent nearly the exact same way it had been on the base back in Tourmaline. Evan activated the provided artifacts both on his own and through the magic transference device. While Dr. Franklin and the others grew excited over each new piece of data they gathered, Evan fought against boredom as he simply stood around touching things for hours. The only interesting part of the day for Evan came near the end, and it came from a thought Dr. Franklin voiced out on a whim.

"I wonder... would it be possible to activate an artifact without touching it?"

Evan was confused at first, but then it suddenly hit him that maybe Dr. Franklin was on to something. He could now send magic outside of his body, so what would happen if he shot it into an artifact? Wanting to find out, Evan had Dr. Franklin set up the magic transference device and took a few big steps back. Concentrating, he carefully separated a ball of magic power from his palm and pushed it gently towards the device. When the ball hit the magic transference machine, the magic was absorbed into it like dry ground desperately sucking up a drop of water. The machine whirred, and the artifact activated instantly.

"Amazing!" Dr. Franklin said.

Evan also cheered for the first time at the new discovery. They tried it a few times and figured out they could vary how long the artifact remained powered up by changing the amount of magic power Evan shot into it. When they were satisfied with the results using the magic transference machine, they began trying to activate artifacts from a distance with no middleman involved. This proved a success as well. The only problem was that activation was the only thing that he could achieve through this method. Since he couldn't change the flow of magic being sent to the artifact or give it commands through intention, there was no way to have any control over the artifact's functions.

"Truly, truly marvelous," Dr. Franklin said. "It really makes one wonder about the potential applications of magic power. For instance, would it be possible for a magician to power an artifact remotely through a spell? The right spell might even be able to travel vast distances in an instant. Combined with the right artifact, the possibilities could be endless..."

"I don't know about any of that," Evan said. "But I can't really use complicated spells right now, so there's no way to test that yet. Maybe in the future."

Dr. Franklin looked regretful, but he fully understood. That experiment was the last for the day as Evan had been booked to meet with the base's doctor to run a few tests at the request of Dr. Franklin and the others. They were hoping to get samples of his blood and semen for their studies. Evan was already used to doctors coveting his juices, so he had no problem agreeing to it. The medical facilities were in the same building, so he was shown to a waiting room on the second floor and made to wait for the doctor. He waited for around ten minutes before the door finally swung open.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Johansson. First name's Kiera. Pleasure to meet you."

"Hi, I'm Evan."

"Yes, I've heard a lot about you," Dr. Johansson said while looking him over. "Dr. Hakim has been thrilled with the IVF results they've been having with your sperm."

"You know Dr. Hakim?"

"Of course," she said. "We went to school together. Even though we never see each other anymore, we still talk frequently."

"Oh, so you're a mage also?"

"Sure am," Dr. Johansson said.

She pointed to her head where a pair of fluffy black ears appeared briefly before disappearing again.

"I'm a werewolf. And a lucky one too since I'm able to hide it completely when I want."

That was certainly a nice ability. He knew several of his friends would kill to be able to hide some of their special features. They weren't ashamed of them, but it did make it difficult to blend into the normal human world. Dr. Johansson would have no such problem, though. On top of looking normal, she was also incredibly attractive. She had long black hair pulled back into a bun except for the strands she let fall freely over the right side of her face. She was medium height and thin with alluring curves. However, her most striking features were her bright blue eyes. All that together made Evan wonder whether she would be better suited as a model than a doctor.

"So, let's see here..." she said, looking through a folder in her hand. "Looks like they want a sample of all the good stuff along with standard vitals. So, we'll take your readings, get some blood and semen, and then we'll have some quick sex. Sound good?"

"Yeah, sure... wait, what!?"

"Something wrong?"

"You said quick sex?"

"Yes, well, it's unfortunate, but I didn't think you'd be able to go for long after cumming once in a cup," she said before smiling and biting her lip. "Or am I wrong?"

"That's not the problem!"

"Oh, am I not pretty enough for you?"

She gently opened her button-up blouse and showed off an impressive display of cleavage for Evan's eyes to feast on. He felt himself growing hard as his mind imagined getting his hands on her breasts. However, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

"You're very pretty," he said steadily. "But I don't want to have sex right now."

"Hmm, impressive," she said, putting her shirt back right and smiling.

"Huh?"

"I heard you had some good moral fiber, but I didn't really believe it myself," she said. "I was sure you'd pounce on me given the chance. But I guess you really are a good boy after all."

"What... you were testing me or something?"

"Maybe?" she said. "I'm sorry if it was too mean-spirited, I just wanted to know what kind of man you really were."

"What would you have done if I took you up on your offer?"

"Well, we would have had sex, I suppose."

"..."

"Why is that so shocking?" she said with a laugh. "I'm a woman with desires just like those you know back in Tourmaline. I want a pup of my own someday as well."

"I guess... I guess I just thought it would be different here."

"Why is that?"

"I mean," he said. "There are other men here at the base. And you even have Dr. Franklin, right?"

"It's true that there are a decent number of men working at the base," she said. "But they aren't mages. They won't do for those of us that want to have children. Sure, they could scratch an itch every now and then, but there actually aren't a lot that go for that."

"Really?"

"Yes. Unfortunately, for normal people, mages can be... scary. I suppose it shouldn't be surprising that not many men want to be with a woman that could so easily overpower them in a contest of strength."

That didn't seem like much of an issue for Evan, but he knew there were plenty of macho man types that would find it unattractive. Still, for someone as beautiful as Dr. Johansson, he would have thought most men would quickly get over such silly misogynistic thinking. It was never a factor in Evan's mind when considering a relationship, even before he learned he had magic. But maybe he was an outlier?

"As for Dr. Franklin," Dr. Johansson said, "he's nerdy, but he's a good enough man. The only problem is his unfortunate condition."

"What condition? Is he sick?"

"No, nothing like that," she said with a sad look. "Dr. Franklin was born in Tourmaline to a family of internal augmenters. However, he was born with no magic power whatsoever. Essentially, he's a normal human without magic."

"That can happen?"

"Yes. It's rare, but it isn't unheard of."

"So, you all aren't attracted to him just because of that?"

"No, not at all," she said. "If anything, he's the one keeping his distance."

"Huh? Why?"

"Well... it's complicated," she said, smiling sadly. "If you really want to know, you should try asking him. I'm sure he'd be willing to tell you his story."

Evan nodded, making a mental note to ask him when a good opportunity came up.

"But now that you know all that, you should really prepare yourself."

"What for?"

"I'm not the only one who will be setting their sights on you," she said. "Those ladies you work with will surely make a move on you before long."

"Well, I guess I'm used to that by now," he said, sighing.

"It's not so bad, is it?" she said, laughing at his dejected look.

"No, it isn't really," he said. "But I do like to get to know people before I sleep with them. I've encountered a few women in Tourmaline that only saw me as an object, and I don't really care to get close to those types. Know what I mean?"

"I do, and I think that's admirable," she said with a bright smile. "But, if I may help you out a little here, I don't think you need to worry about those four in the lab. They're all good people."

"..."

"It's up to you who you sleep with, of course. But, those girls, and me too, we've given up a lot to work out here away from our families. I'm sure we'd all appreciate any attention you were willing to give us in the short time we have with you."

After that, Dr. Johansson gave him his check up and drew his blood. She left him alone to do his business, and he soon provided her with a full cup of his semen. That was the end of his long first day of work in the lab. He spent that evening contemplating what he had learned from the doctor, especially the part about having fun with the mage women of Far Water. He had resolved himself to get to know people before having sex with them, lest he end up in bed with a racist psychopath. But how much did he really need to know to give someone the seal of approval?

Thinking about it, none of the ladies in the lab seemed like they had bad personalities. They had been very welcoming, and he hadn't seen them discriminate amongst each other despite being of different races. Considering the limited amount of time he had here, maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing to lower his guard a little and have fun with them. He did need to find some sexual partners for the summer if he was going to get any training done after all.

The thing with Dr. Franklin kept gnawing at the back of his mind, though. Was it really his decision not to get sexually involved with the other girls? It felt like he needed to answer that question first before considering anything else. In the meantime, he planned to keep acting like normal and help with everyone's work as best he could.

Ch. 21

As the next week went by, everyone began to get comfortable with each other, leading to a regular routine. The typical morning started with everyone going over the results of the previous day's experiments. They would decide whether they needed more data or if the results were satisfactory. Depending on the decision, they would either spend the rest of the morning running more tests or deciding whose idea they would try out next. The afternoons were almost entirely devoted to carrying out whatever experiment had been decided on as next in line.

For the most part, Evan simply supplied magic power, but they also picked his brain about what he had learned regarding how magic works. He was the only magician they had ever spoken with, so it was a rare opportunity to gain some understanding as to how the process of bringing magic to life actually worked. As he was still just a baby magician, he could only tell them so much, but they were grateful for every detail they got. Evan also ended up learning a great deal himself about how magic worked as Dr. Franklin and the others often generously explained how their magic technology functioned. Overall, it was a pleasant exchange, and the work was easy. It definitely wasn't a bad way to spend the summer.

On top of the progress in the work being done, Evan was also steadily making friends with his new coworkers as well. Each day he was learning something new about their personalities. Like how he figured out Sierra was a prankster when she asked him to borrow the magic power laser knife from Delilah, only later to learn no such thing existed. Or how he learned Delilah was a bit gullible and naïve as he saw her continue looking for said knife for nearly an hour. But his biggest take away after spending a week with them was that Dr. Johansson had been right. The four assistants did seem to be good people with big hearts. And also, they definitely wanted to fuck him.

After spending enough time surrounded by horny young women at school, Evan felt like he had gotten pretty good at sensing these things now. That didn't matter much, though, since most of the signs weren't very subtle. For example, Chelsey was constantly spying on him. He frequently saw her peeking at him around corners, and even when they were working together, he would often catch her eyes staring down at his crotch.

Tiffany similarly seemed to have a hard time keeping her mind off dirty things when he was working in her space. She frequently had Freudian slips around him, such as saying ass instead of glass, or dick instead of pick. One time she even asked him if he wanted to go for a fuck before frantically explaining she meant to say snack. He wasn't sure how she mixed up those two words, but judging by how she grew beet red and nearly cried out of embarrassment, he figured she wasn't doing it intentionally. But there was one of the women that was intentional with her flirting.

Sierra frequently made excuses to get in Evan's space when they were working together. She would feel his arms and ooh and ahh about his muscles, or she would pass by him and subtly rub her breasts against his arm. He might have thought it was a simple accident if it didn't keep happening and she didn't smirk at him with a sparkle in her eye every time. As obvious as she was with her playful antics, she still lost when it came to forwardness thanks to a request Delilah made at lunch one day.

"Hey, Evan," she said. "Want to come to my room and have sex tonight after work?"

The four lady scientists were all having lunch with Evan that day, and they all showed different reactions to Delilah's question. Tiffany's mouth dropped open, and her face looked like a tomato. Chelsey let out a surprised squeak that sounded like a cute mouse. And Sierra nearly spit out her food as she began trying to hold back her laughter.

"What?" Delilah said with a confused look as she saw their reactions. "Did I do something wrong?"

"Well... it's just kinda sudden," Evan said.

"But Sierra said that's how her and these two asked you, right?" she said, looking hopeful. "I just didn't want to be left out is all."

Evan glanced at Sierra, who no longer could hold back her laughter, and just shook his head.

"No, Delilah, I'm sorry," he said. "These three haven't asked anything of me like that."

"But... then..."

Finally, it clicked into place as she stood and glared at her friend sitting next to her.

"SIERRA!"

Sierra tried to run away, but she was physically outmatched. Delilah easily caught her and held her over her head like she was just a doll. She angrily carried her away as Sierra screamed that it was just a joke. Evan had no idea what Delilah planned to do, but whatever punishment she doled out, he was sure Sierra had earned it. Still, when a loud shriek carried into the cafeteria from the hall, he had to wonder if she really would be alright.

"Don't worry," Tiffany said, seeing his concern. "She won't really hurt her. Those two have always been like that. They've been best friends since they were little, and Sierra has always played pranks on her. Delilah falls for it every time, but she always laughs about it later."

"She doesn't ever get tired of it?"

"No," Tiffany said with a smile. "Sierra is only like that with the people she cares about, and she never lets it go too far. They're like sisters. Always picking on each other, but nothing could ever come between them in the end."

It was an awkward lunch, but even if it had been because of one of Sierra's pranks, Evan had confirmed that Delilah wanted sex from him. Based on what she said, it seemed like she was aware the others wanted that as well, just as he thought. It was flattering to be so sought after, truly. Maybe next time one of them asked him such a question, he might just take them up on the offer. After all, they were attractive women, and they weren't the only ones with urges.

While he was busy helping the scientists carry out their experiments, Robin was spending most of her time with Kimberly. It seemed like any time Kimberly moved around the room, Robin would eventually wander over to her side. Not being one to chat someone's ear off, she typically just lingered near the older woman, but Evan noticed her face did seem to light up any time Kimberly would talk to her. Evan was eating alone with Robin one day when he decided to finally ask her what was up.

"Kimberly is a sort of hero in the TSF," Robin said, looking mildly embarrassed. "She used to be in charge of training new recruits, and she helped train a lot of the officers in leadership positions today. Even after she left Tourmaline, they still use videos she made to teach recruits how to use various weapons."

"Weapons?"

"Like swordplay or archery," she said. "She's the best at it all."

"Huh," Evan said. "Wouldn't it be better to just, you know, use a gun?"

"Only when dealing with normal humans," she said. "Most mages can withstand gunfire with proper training. That's when using magically strengthened weapons such as swords and spears are more useful."

"Guess that makes sense," he said. "But magically strengthened weapons? Is that like an artifact?"

Robin nodded.

"It's a very basic artifact, one that doesn't need to be activated externally. They usually have spells attached to them to enhance durability or sharpness. Nothing complicated, but important for standing up to the tests of mage combat."

"That's pretty cool," he said. "I don't think I've seen anyone in Tourmaline with any weapons like that, though."

"There isn't any need for the most part, and there aren't too many of them available" she said. "You'd probably only see them brought out in a life-or-death situation."

Robin turned and looked over to where Kimberly stood against the wall, her sword sitting on her hip as always.

"Her sword is famous," she said. "It's said to be able to cut through anything, even solid steel, and it's unbreakable. They say the number of swords that have broken against it is countless."

"Whoa, that's badass," he said. "So, basically, you're just a big fan, huh?"

Robin shrugged, neither confirming nor denying, but the blush on her cheeks seemed confirmation enough for Evan.

"Well, why don't you see if she'll train you?" he said. "You're already stuck watching us work anyway. Might as well get something out of it."

"No, I don't want to bother her like that."

"But you would like it right?"

"Of course," she said. "It would be a huge honor."

"Ok," Evan said smiling. "Follow me."

"Wait, what are you doing?"

Evan ignored her and walked over to where Kimberly stood. She was next to the door, surveying the room for any threats like always while everyone ate. Even though she seemed to always be on high alert without taking any breaks, she wasn't so serious that you couldn't approach her. That was evident when she smiled and pleasantly greeted Evan as he walked over.

"Hi, Evan," she said. "How's the food today?"

"Pretty good," he said. "Are you not eating?"

"Nah, I've got something back in the lab."

"Oh good," he said. "Hey, Robin was just telling me about your sword. It sounds really awesome."

"Yeah?"

Kimberly peered behind Evan at Robin standing awkwardly a few steps back and smiled. She then unsheathed her sword and held it forward for Evan to see. It looked like a normal sword to Evan, but it did look immaculately clean and sharp.

"So cool," he said. "Can I hold it?"

"Sure, why not," she said, handing it over. "Just be careful, it'll cut through your arm like nothing if you let it."

Evan nodded and held the hilt of the longsword in his hand.

"Wow, it's a lot lighter than I thought it would be."

"Mmhmm," Kimberly said. "And perfectly balanced."

Evan activated his magic vision and saw the magic within the sword as plain as day. He couldn't tell exactly what the spells did, but he could see a pretty good amount of magic power had been put into it. He whistled and handed the sword back over.

"Impressive," he said. "Robin said you used to train people to fight?"

"That's right," Kimberly said. "Been a long while since then, though. It was a pain in the ass, but some days I do miss it."

"That's interesting, because I was wondering... do you think you could teach Robin a little while we are here? She said you're the best, and I think it would be a good skill for my bodyguard to have, you know?"

"Hmm," she said with a thoughtful look before addressing Robin. "I don't think I'd mind. Is that what you want?"

"Oh, umm, yes," she said in a quiet voice. "But only if it isn't a burden."

"Not at all," Kimberly said. "It'll give us both something productive to do. Plus, I want to see if you're as talented as they say."

"Then... I'll be in your care," Robin said with a bow.

Later when they were alone, Robin chastised Evan for asking Kimberly for help without asking her permission, but in the end, she thanked him for what he had done. Evan wouldn't have had the courage to ask so bluntly if it had been for his own sake, but he had no problem asking a favor for Robin. He felt it was the least he could do considering she had saved his life before. And so, from that day on, on top of raucous magically charged experiments, the lab was also filled with the sounds of intense swordplay.

Ch. 22

As the days passed and Evan grew closer to the women of Far Water, he also spent a lot of time observing Dr. Franklin. Specifically, he carefully watched how Dr. Franklin interacted with the women in the lab and how he reacted when those same women would flirt with Evan. Perhaps not surprisingly, Dr. Johansson was right again. Dr. Franklin paid no mind to the girls' antics concerning Evan, and when he himself spoke with them, it seemed to always be all about business. Of course, that's how it should be in a workplace, especially for the person in charge, but it felt strange considering they were all from Tourmaline, a place with so few men that all the women were starved for sex and male attention.

Of all the workers in the lab, Evan worked the closest with Dr. Franklin. Franklin was involved in most of his assistants' work and also had solo experiments of his own, so it was rare for Evan to go a day without spending significant time with him. Despite that, he still didn't know much about the man personally. He had heard a few stories from him about his time at M. A., but their talks always related to magic or science. Evan wanted to change that, so he began looking for a chance to spend some time together outside of the lab, but it was difficult.

Dr, Franklin rarely ate lunch in the cafeteria, preferring to eat at his desk most of the time so he could continue his work, which meant bonding over food was a no go. He also frequently worked late into the evenings when everyone else had quit for the day, often saying he just wanted to finish one last thing. It wasn't rare for Evan and the others to get to the lab in the morning and find that Dr. Franklin had fallen asleep at his desk. It seemed the man really had no time for anything other than his work, but a lifestyle like that always took its toll eventually.

"He's gonna burn himself out again," Tiffany said with a sigh.

She was having Evan help her with an artifact that morning, and they both witnessed Dr. Franklin fall asleep in the middle of his work for a few minutes. But instead of taking a break to get some sleep, he slapped his cheeks and began downing coffee as if his life depended on it.

"So, this isn't anything new?" Evan said.

"No, unfortunately," she said. "It seems to happen every few months or so. He gets fixated on something he's working on and can't bring himself to focus on anything else, even his health. He always spirals downward until he pulls a few too many all-nighters and completely crashes. After a week of rest, he returns in good spirits, vowing to never to do it again, but..."

"He always does, huh?"

"Mmhmm."

"Should we do something?"

"We've tried before," she said. "He always hears us out and acts like he's going to change, and I think he genuinely wants to, but in the end, he always ends up back here working in the late hours. He just can't help himself."

"Does he really not do anything other than work?"

"Pretty much," she said. "We've tried to get him to have fun with us after work, but he never joins us for anything aside from the rare group dinner. But maybe it would be different with you?"

"You think?"

"Maybe! He might just need some guy time," she said before her face fell. "Or maybe he just actually hates our guts."

Evan thought about what she said the rest of the day, and he had to admit that there might be something to it. It did seem like Franklin strictly avoided crossing the line of professionalism with women in the lab to the point that he didn't even want to have fun as friends after hours. If his issues were only with women, though, then maybe Evan could get him to hang out and chill, which would be good for both of them. Evan could get to know Dr. Franklin better, and Dr. Franklin could relax for a while and not work himself to exhaustion. Evan hung around late that evening until everyone except the security officers and Dr. Franklin had left, and he took his shot.

"Hey, want to come to my room and hang out tonight, just us?"

"Huh?"

"Yeah, just, chill or something?"

"Oh... well, I don't think I can," Dr. Franklin said. "I really need to finish this tonight."

"You can barely stand, dude," Evan said. "Everyone's getting a little worried that you're going at it too hard."

"Really?"

"Yeah. They mentioned you've burned out a few times in the past?"

"..."

"Seriously," Evan said. "A break from work would do you good. We can watch some movies or play games or whatever you want."

Dr. Franklin looked around at his desk for a few moments before letting out a big sigh.

"You're probably right," he said, chuckling. "It'd be nice to turn off for a while."

And so, as easily as that, Evan managed to do what none of the others in the lab could. They took some time to clean up, but it didn't take long for them to find themselves inside Evan's room.

"What would you like to do tonight?"

"I have no idea," Dr. Franklin said.

"Well... what do you usually do after work?"

"Oh, well... sometimes I read articles on various findings from researchers around the world," Dr. Franklin said. "Besides that... I read books from time to time."

"I see," Evan said. "Ever just watch some movies?"

"Oh God," Dr. Franklin said. "I don't remember the last movie I watched. It's been a while."

"Let's do that then," Evan said. "What do you like? Horror? Action? Superheroes?"

"Hmm," Dr. Franklin said. "I did see Iron Man back in the day, and I remember liking it, even if the science was a little off."

"Oh cool," Evan said. "Was it just the first Iron Man then?"

"There are more?"

"Oh boy," Evan said smiling. "You have a lot to catch up on."

They then dove into the MCU right from the beginning. Evan worried that Franklin might not be into it, but he surprisingly became quite immersed in the connected storylines. Evan enjoyed watching the older movies he hadn't seen in a while, and Franklin seemed to get a kick out of explaining how certain technologies in the film were amazing, but totally unbelievable. They were a few movies in when they got to a scene of the male and female leads sharing a touching moment together after much turmoil. It wasn't anything new to Evan, but it seemed to touch something inside Franklin.

"That looks nice," he said and sighed.

"The kiss?"

"Just... the whole relationship."

Evan did a fist pump in his head. This was just the type of opening he was looking for all night.

"You don't have a girlfriend?" he said.

"No."

"Do you... like guys?"

Dr. Franklin laughed lightly and shook his head.

"No, no," he said. "I just don't seem to connect well with women."

"Why is that?" Evan said. "I mean, the ladies here seem pretty nice, and I bet one or two of them wouldn't mind having a date with you."

"Well, you might be right, but... I just... can't..."

Noticing the look of confusion on Evan's face, Dr. Franklin decided to explain.

"I assume you were told about my condition?"

"That you have no magic?"

"Yes," Dr. Franklin said. "As I'm sure you've experienced, men in Tourmaline have certain responsibilities to the community they are expected to meet."

Evan nodded.

"But without magic, I couldn't live up to those expectations, you see. I was essentially a defective product. And that's how I was treated."

"What... did they do?"

"I wasn't hurt physically or anything like that," Dr. Franklin said. "My family still provided for me. But I could hear the comments behind my back, from family and from peers at school. All thought I was a waste of a man since I couldn't produce mage children like they wanted."

"Things got better as I got older," he continued. "The women my age were no longer cruel about my plight, perhaps gaining a better understanding of it as they matured. I even had a few relationships throughout high school and college. But they all ended the same way. We had fun together, and what I thought was love, but then... they left. They all said the same thing - that they were going to start trying for children with someone else."

"..."

"I knew then that while I could possibly earn a Tourmaline woman's affection for a short while, I ultimately couldn't give them what they needed in life. So, I stopped trying."

"But, do you not ever have feelings for anyone anymore?" Evan said. "Like, someone from the lab?"

Dr. Franklin shook his head with a sad smile.

"No," he said. "I love them as colleagues, but I have no desire to get romantically involved with them. It's for everyone's own good, mine and theirs. So, you don't have to worry about me if you want to pursue anything with them."

Evan laughed awkwardly as he realized Dr. Franklin had seen through him easily.

"So, are you planning on being single forever?" Evan said.

"Who knows," Dr. Franklin said. "Sometimes, like tonight, I feel like I would like nothing more than a woman to love... and to have her love me back. But, until that perfect woman shows up, I think I shall simply remain married to my job!"

"You do seem to love it a lot," Evan said, laughing.

"It's always been my passion!" Dr. Franklin said. "As a child, I hated fantasy worlds and magic, you can probably understand why. But science fiction! That was a fantasy devoid of magic, built purely by man through hard work and ingenuity. At a young age I dedicated myself to learning how technology works in the hopes of making my fantastic dreams come true."

"I, of course, soon found the limitations of what modern technology can accomplish, and was greatly discouraged," he said. "But then I had a thought, one that would change my life forever. What if magic power could be harnessed with technology, allowing even the common man to create miracles that would otherwise be impossible!? Everyone thought it was the cute idea of a desperate child, until college when I first proved it was possible with the world's first working magic circuit. The world of science hasn't been the same since!"

"That's amazing."

"Yes, it really is," Dr. Franklin said. "I sometimes wonder what would have happened to that sad little magicless boy if he hadn't studied so hard. He might never have found happiness like I have."

"Well, he might not be working himself to death either, so there's that," Evan said, nudging Franklin with his elbow.

Dr. Franklin just laughed sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head.

"That's true," he said. "Thanks for making me come here tonight. It has been a nice break."

"Why don't we make it a normal thing?" Evan said. "Come hang after work and I can get you caught up on all the great movies you've missed out on."

"Ok, it's a deal."

They finished the night shortly after that, both feeling pleased with how the evening went. Dr. Franklin's story had been both sad and inspiring. He was no longer shocked to learn about discrimination in Tourmaline, but it was still disturbing to hear how Dr. Franklin had been treated as a child. But the way he built a life of his own, the way he doggedly pursued his own passion, that was amazing, and Evan couldn't stop thinking about it.

Did he have anything like that in his life? If there was anything, it would be his pursuit of a cure for Magebane, but was he doing enough for that? He couldn't help but think not. He had no idea how to solve such a grand problem. Hell, he didn't even know what he wanted to major in at school. He felt like someone with a clear goal for their life like Dr. Franklin was much better suited to save the world than him. But there were some things that only Evan would be able to do in the end. He could only hope that inspiration would find him sooner rather than later so he could one day be the man the world needed him to be.